Organizations invest thousands in recruiting top candidates. They also need to invest the same amount of effort in keeping them once they are hired, which is why they need a good onboarding and employee development program.
According to a Brandon Hall Group study, companies with strong onboarding and employee development programs improve new hire retention by 82% and productivity by over 70%. The study showed that candidates lose confidence in organizations with weak onboarding programs and are more likely to leave during their first year.
We recommend businesses follow these steps to establish effective onboarding and employee development programs. It is best to begin with an employee onboarding checklist.
How To Create an Employee Onboarding Checklist
You used assessments for new employees to screen and hire applicants, and the perfect candidate accepted your offer. Now, you need to focus on onboarding the new hire and defining the training they need. These are the steps you should include on your employee onboarding checklist.
Before The New Hire’s Start Date
Staying in contact with the new hire is important, especially if their start day is a week or more in the future. Once the employee has given notice at their current job, they might get counteroffers or offers from other companies. So, these are several things you need to include on your employee onboarding checklist:
The New Hire’s First Day
The first day at a new company usually entails having a photo taken and an ID badge made, completing and signing required paperwork and setting up equipment. It may include an orientation session to review HR policies, administrative procedures, and safety information. All of these should be on your employee onboarding checklist.
Once you show the new hire their office or workstation, introduce them to team members and co-workers in other departments. You should also review their job description and recap what is expected of them. Answer questions about work hours, rules, and when they can expect their first paycheck.
During The First Week
Communication and clarification are paramount during the first week, so there are several things you need to include on your employee onboarding checklist. Encourage new employees to ask questions and reinforce essential rules that all employees need to know. Assigning the new employee a work buddy or mentor, who can answer questions, is also a good idea.
You should begin assigning small tasks to help the new employee become familiar with their job. This is also the time to implement the new hire’s required training. Review the new hire’s skills test results with them so they understand the training program objectives and see why the program is set up as it is. You can also explain that they will have input in setting up future learning and development so it aligns with their career goals and objectives.
Offering training and development opportunities will help you retain top employees and reduce turnover. More than 75% of employees say they would stay with a company long-term if it offers good training and development opportunities. Over half want to develop skills that position them for future opportunities, and 39% say they would leave for a job that offered better learning programs.
After The First Week
A large part of your onboarding process is about improving employee experience, so you cannot forget about the employee after the first week. Your employee onboarding checklist should include milestones for 30, 60, 90, and 120 days and further if needed. It is always good to keep touching base and telling new hires how they are doing.
Around 68% of new hires leave within their first three months, and 90% of employees continue to explore new opportunities, even if they are not actively looking for a new job. U.S. businesses lose $1 trillion annually due to voluntary turnover, and replacing an employee costs around one-half to two times their annual salary, making it important to safeguard your investment in the new employee.
Moving Forward
New employees need time to reach the top of the learning curve and maximize their performance. They also need time to understand and adapt to your company culture, which is why onboarding and training should be ongoing.
You should use a new hire’s original assessment results as a baseline and retest the employee at checkpoints to measure progress. This will show you whether training has been effective and which skills the new hire should focus on next. Repeating this process at each milestone creates a training and development roadmap custom-tailored to each employee’s needs, skills, and career goals.
Get Started with Employee Onboarding Checklists
Effective onboarding and training programs make hires feel welcome and help ease their transition into your company culture. They also encourage managers and employees to agree on performance expectations so there are no misunderstandings in the future.
Are you interested in learning how establishing a good employee onboarding program can help you improve new hire experience and retention? Contact eSkill to request a demo.